Fast-fashion website Boohoo has revealed it's eyeing up Dorothy Perkins, Wallis and Burton, just days after confirming a £55million takeover of 200-year-old Debenhams.
The business, which is also rivalling Asos in a bid for Arcadia’s flagship brand Topshop, said it's in exclusive discussions with administrators.
"Boohoo group plc confirms that it is in exclusive discussions with the Administrators of Arcadia over the acquisition of the Dorothy Perkins, Wallis and Burton (excluding HIIT) brands," a statement said.
It comes less than a week after Boohoo's rescue bid for Debenhams was granted the go-ahead - a move that will see the website saved, but 118 stores disappear from the high street.
Around 12,000 jobs are now at risk - with shop workers the most affected.
Boohoo said it plans to rebuild and relaunch the Debenhams site, as it moves to become the top online fashion brand in the UK and expand into beauty, sport and homeware too.
Executive chairman Mahmud Kamani said: "Our ambition is to create the UK's largest marketplace. Our acquisition of the Debenhams brand is strategically significant as it represents a huge step which accelerates our ambition to be a leader, not just in fashion eCommerce, but in new categories including beauty, sport and homeware.”
The deal means the Debenhams brand will survive - but not the physical stores.
Elsewhere, ASOS has confirmed that it's in exclusive talks to take over Topshop, Topman, Miss Selfridge and HIIT.
Other retailers including Boohoo, Mike Ashley's Frasers Group, and JD Sports in partnership with US retail giant Authentic Brands, are also understood to be bidding for the flagship Topshop brand.
There are 13,000 jobs at risk from Arcadia's collapse, and many of its 500 stores are unlikely to survive.
The Asos deal is for the rights to the brands, not the physical stores.
In a statement to the markets, ASOS confirmed it is in discussions with the administrators of Arcadia, Philip Green's collapsed shopping empire.
"The Board believes this would represent a compelling opportunity to acquire strong brands that resonate well with its customer base," it said.
"However, at this stage, there can be no certainty of a transaction and ASOS will keep shareholders updated as appropriate."
Arcadia, which employed around 13,000 people and has 444 UK stores, collapsed last year due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, years of under-investment and a failure to keep up with shifts to online shopping.
Get the latest money advice, news and help straight to your inbox - sign up at mirror.co.uk/email
The retail group slid into administration on November 30 - a day before new laws came into force which would have seen the taxman become a preferred creditor and entitled to repayment ahead of unsecured creditors.
Founded in Manchester in 2006, Boohoo typically specialises in fast-fashion for twenty-somethings.
In early 2017, the group acquired fashion brands PrettyLittleThing and Nasty Gal.
In March 2019, it rescued MissPap, in August 2019, the Karen Millen and Coast brands, and in June 2020 the Warehouse and Oasis brands.
As of August 31, 2020, the boohoo group had just over 17million active customers across all its brands around the world.
